Ethiopian Highlands Annual Review and Planning meeting

17-18 September 2012
Info centre break out room, ILRI Ethiopia, Addis Ababa
Go back to the event agenda

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Designing research

The assignment given was to split participants - in a world cafe format - in three groups focusing on:

1. Situation analysis and programme-wide synthesis
2. Integrated systems improvement
3. Scaling and delivery

For each of these, the groups were expected to suggest:

• Activities / initiatives.
• Methods / approaches / tools to develop &/or implement these activities.

Summary:

• In the situation analysis we have to follow a participatory approach (survey, participatory appraisal, typology), develop flexible indicators, look at system components to improve, have continuous engagement with farmers (from the start through frequent visits), organize a typology that looks into what farmers need to have and what they want to have and think about how to quantify program level intensification so we can measure change / attitude of the farmer / income.
• In the integrated systems improvement, we can identify intensification trajectories, sequence interventions, develop methods for participatory tech selection and identify best bets. Then we can pilot some of these interventions. Then knowledge management and capacity building comes in to assess interventions and share experiences among farmers. We can use some tools developed in the quick win projects or NBDC for this.
• In the scaling and delivery phase, what we want to scale up is 'the ability of farmers and other stakeholders to make decisions on strategic activities to improve their living conditions'. We can use site stratification/characterization/selection, policy advocacy, capacity building, identify indicators. This approach would be integrated, systemic, participatory and use some existing tools (GIS, baseline surveys, VC assessment, whole farm-based system). A multi-stakeholder platform could help in this respect.

Discussion:

We might look at various initiatives: Knowledge and capacity strengthening, social cohesion, technical advances and institutional strengthening?

Questions about the research framework?
Comment: The research objectives match the CRP 1.2 objectives and they are related to CRP 1.1 too (with less emphasis on risk reduction).
C: There is also a chance to influence the process of 1.2.

Q: Does this need to be approved by the Ethiopian government?
A: It was pointed out in the inception workshop that it should be approved. --> It should be part of the national program. All CRPs are now mapped and related to CAADP Ethiopia and the Ministry looks at linkages between the projects and the Ethiopian CAADP.

Situation analysis and programme-wide synthesis

• Follow a participatory approach
• Baseline survey (IFPRI will be doing this survey - but most of us disagreed because it may not work for all of us). Start by reviewing the existing activities to assess gaps, define targets for the project etc. We can team up and define what we want from each project.
• Do we stratify gender, capital assets... ?
• Institutional issues are local and political
• Characterize people based on what they have but also on what they want to have
• Set a common set of indicators e.g. biophysical indicators, institutional, health and nutrition.
• Program-wide synthesis is also about technology transfer (e.g. farmer to farmer visits), developing flexible indicators
• How to ensure sustainable intensification? We talked about systems improvements? What are the systems components we need to improve? Based on this we can develop ??
• Importance of participatory approaches e.g. frequent visits, regular communication etc. as an entry point to engage with farmers.
• Different tools: participatory appraisal etc.
• Identify the nature of the site
• We looked at broad overview
• We need to have participatory approach
  • How?
  • We need to have the local knowledge
  • Baseline
  • Gender
  • Capital assets
  • Location in the landscape
• Overview the community first?
• Separate issue in gender
• Household survey
• Tools that can be used:
  • FEAST
  • AKT5 software
• Stratification of hypothesis DA involvement when and how?
• Frequent visit with farmers... two-way communication
• Entry point: build trust /relationship, identify limitation opportunities
• Institutional issues (local institutions and policy level)
• Important to characterize people, based on what they want to have
• Program wide synthesis, projects across Africa, how do we transfer technology
• How to quantify program level intensification, we can measure change, attitude of the farmer, income, etc
• We need to have frequent visit and two-way communication
• Identify limitations and opportunities
• Participatory appraisal, household survey and typologies

Comments:

• Even if IFPRI develops a questionnaire, it should be validated by the research team;
• In IFPRI we have huge databases but depending on the objectives of each project you need complementary data - we have to team up and look at required datasets --> We have to identify the gaps. --> Any baseline data we collect will be on top of what we have at our disposal. ATA has a lot of surveys from the past five years.

Integrated systems improvement

• Four main areas: developing approaches for interventions at farm level
  • Identifying potential intensification trajectories
  • How to sequence interventions to suit stage of intensification of households/systems
  • Developing methods for participatory technology selection
  • Identifying sweet spots / best bets/fits which would make real impact.
• Piloting some of these interventions e.g.
  • Combining improved legumes with improved livestock feeding practices
  • Increased productivity through soil fertility management and experimenting with novel approaches
  • CA with a livestock lens
  • Rainwater harvesting
  • Fertilizer trees, fiderbia/ Acacia/ leguminous trees
  • Alternatives to draught power to save feed
  • Legume rotations (effective rhizobia, biological n fix)
  • Micro dosing
  • Developing incentives for better soil management
  • Kitchen gardens/ continued poultry
  • Supplemental irrigation
  • Site specific fertilizers recommendation , free grazing issues
  • Agroforestry / MPT
• Knowledge management and Capacity building
  • Inventories of management practices that have been successful – then arrange cross visits for community leaders / farmers
  • Testing novel extension models draw from other places. Alternatives to campaigns?
  • Training on market oriented production
• Tools
  • Happy strategies game , prioritizing SWC practices
  • Tech Fit - for prioritizing livestock feed intervention
  • Ex ante modeling of integrated interventions Nuances

Scaling and delivery

• What are we scaling up or out? Jerry suggested scaling up the ability of farmers and other stakeholders to make decisions on strategic activities to improve their living conditions.
• Activities:
  • Site stratification in +/- homogeneous strata, using a systems approach using agro-ecology, markets, institutions.
  • Tools: GIS (could be linked up with Quick Water)
  • Site selection based on different strata - using participatory approach to select sites
  • Baseline survey
  • Value chain assessment
  • Characterize the sites (see group 1)
• Looking at socio-ecological niches (taking into account socio-economic ...) ?? to scale up / out.
• Whole farm-based model (see presentation about Nuances)
• Other processes to scale up: whole farm, crop-livestock-agroforestry
• What are the key elements and actors in this agenda?
  • MSP, extension agents, private sector / Player actors in scaling up on impact pathways
  • Multi stakeholder platform (extensions, private sectors ,etc..)
• Once we have stratified the sites and areas we need to characterize the interventions, define indicators, prioritize them and combine them into maps
• Policy advocacy, capacity building of farming communities.
• Ability of farmers and other stakeholders to make decision on strategic activities in changing condition and environments
• What activities
  • Site stratification
  • Site selection
  • Site characterization
  • Intervention characterization (indicators, proxies of success)
  • Identify indicator, prioritize and combine them in maps
  • Policy advocacy
  • Capacity building / strengthening of farming communities
• Approaches
  • Participatory
  • System approach (agro-ecologic. Market. Institution , etc)
  • Socioecological niche (social, economic, institutional, biophysical environment)
  • Integrated approach system
• Methods and tools
  • GIS, Quick Water work
  • Baseline survey
  • Value chain assessment
  • Whole farm based models (farm productivity, income , behavior change)

Comments:

• Even if IFPRI develops a questionnaire, it should be validated by the research team;